"Hella," Iris called. She was unsure if she should have or not. Hecate looked tense.

Hecate had run off to the roof of the Colesium, leaving Ianthe behind. Iris followed her and asked Ianthe to return.

"Iris!" Hecate turned back. Iris could see her red eyes and tense face; she did not look like herself, even though she tried to appear her cheerful self.

"I’m sorry…" Iris knew Diantha was doing this for Hecate’s future, yet she felt guilty on some level for putting Hecate in this spot.

"Don’t be; it is the way it should’ve been. I created this mess… and… and I should be the one to end it. It is my burden to bear anyway." Hecate began with her sure voice, but it became mute and strained as she spoke; tears filled her eyes.

Iris did not know what she should say. This situation was beyond what she was capable of as a human or as a mage. But she knew Hecate was a child. She should not be feeling this burden. She had not expected her to react this badly. Iris had expected her to say, I just need to burn my opponent, or something along those lines.

Iris stepped forward and pulled Hecate into a hug. She hoped Hecate would calm down a little.

Hecate did not. Iris’s attempt to give her comfort broke down the last bit of control Hecate had. She broke down crying, clutching Iris. Tears streamed down her face.

"W-what if I lost?" Her hold on Iris tightened. "It will not be me who will have to pay the price. I am Ilona’s student. Lady Diantha—it is she who will have to pay the price. I don’t care about me… If it was me who had to face the consequences... It should’ve been me, but it is Lady Diantha who bears the burden of my wrongs and failures. I cannot… lose, but I know I will. I am just a level four... There’s no way I can win. I am weak. Afraid. And a coward."

Iris opened her mouth to reassure her. To say, she would kill the inspector if Hecate were to lose. but she did not. Diantha would’ve known how it would affect Hecate, yet she went ahead with it. This was the intended reaction; she could not lessen her burden.

Or should she? Iris wanted to reassure her; seeing her like this was heartbreaking. She was just like Winny. Hecate should be full of energy.

"You cannot worry about the outcome you cannot control, Hecate. All you can do is fight… If you were weak, then Lady Diantha would not have placed her expectations on you. She believes in you. You need to accept the burden and guilt of your actions and move forward… Only then will you become strong."

Just like she did when Winny sacrificed herself. As long as she keeps pushing ahead, she can right the wrongness of her actions.

That's why it’s more painful! She should not trust me; I shoved her into this mess. She should blame me, hate me, but no, she would still gently smile at me, like I have not done something wrong."

"But you have not—what else could you have done? Hecate, you can blame yourself for your lady’s hardship, but you have to understand. What you did was not wrong. Diantha would never blame you; no one will."

"If I did not do something wrong, then why?! Why… are we in this situation?"

Why? Iris patted Hecate’s head. It was not her that Hecate needed, but Diantha... This question was not hers to answer; she was the wrong person to ask it. Still, she would try to solve her conundrum.

"To get what they want... You’re not wrong to defend yourself. The laws of this empire are to blame. If they were not twisted, favouring the inspector beyond reasoning, this would not have happened. All you can do is believe what you did is not wrong, trust in Diantha, and move forward."

Hecate did not say anything more; she just nodded and controlled her spiralling emotions. "Why did you kill him?" Hecate asked after she had controlled her emotions.

Iris knew this question would come, and she was still unsure what she should say.

"I must. The next match would’ve been you and me. And I would have had to forfeit so that you could go to the final."

But you could have won the tournament."

Iris knew she could've "If I did, you may never move forward from this tournament, Hecate. You will always blame yourself for the events of this tournament. You must win this yourself. I said on the first day that there is a price for strength—the guilt, pain, and anguish you feel now are that price. You must bear through this to have the strength that you need to never be in this situation again. Even if it is cruel, I cannot leave you stuck here."

Hecate held back from saying anything, but Iris knew Hecate was not pleased with her reasoning. Even so, there is a strength she needs to have, and there is a price she must pay.

No one should have above 80–85% mastery in Level 4. They should ascend; if Hecate cannot, then she needs to face the pressure to push her forward. It was cruel. Iris would not have agreed with Diantha if she had known Hecate would break down like this. A part of her regretted this decision.

"I’m sorry, Hecate,"

"No… I understand. Lady Diantha convinced you that I needed to win the tournament."

Iris nodded.

Hecate sighed, "There is a reason I cannot ascend to level 5." Hecate muttered.

"It is related to Raven?" Iris muttered. Iris could imagine It was the only thing that broke Hecate’s cheerful nature.

"Yes…" Hecate took a deep breath, "That Raven is my twin sister. At twelve, she died, and since then, she has reincarnated into a Raven and has all the memories of her life as a human. I’m just half a soul; she is my other half. To ascend to Level 5, I need to kill her and consume her soul. Only then can I ascend to Level 5."

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"I see…" Iris went quiet. She regretted her decision. She should’ve consulted with Ilona. "I’m sorry…" Iris muttered in a weak voice. She was forcing Hecate to kill her sister.

Iris looked at the inspector’s corner. Just a simple shock, and the inspector would be dead. It was easy to end Hecate’s suffering. She was not part of any organization. The worst the Empire could do is hunt her down. They cannot pursue her—she was lightning.

Iris raised her hand, and a purple circle formed above the inspector’s place. Just a simple shock, but she could not see him. She needed to create a homing discharge.

Hecate’s eyes widened as she realized what Iris was doing. "Wait!" Hecate tackled Iris down. The circle was broken by the unexpected shock.

"What are you doing, Hecate? This is the best solution."

"No! This is the worst solution—you have no idea how strong the empire is. It has not been invaded once in centuries, when the world was filled with people who could easily destroy armies. You will have no place to run if you attack him. Think about Winny; you still need to find that Ath, whatever that is. You cannot do this."

"Aren’t I indirectly forcing you to kill your sister? Please don’t worry about me; I’m Lightning. They will never be able to catch me, and even if they do, I can always return to Labyrinth."

"Are you even listening to what you’re saying?! You just escaped Labyrinth in this broken condition, and I will not allow you to return there after doing something impulsive. This is my battle, not yours. Please… I cannot bear the guilt of making your life more miserable." Tears trickled down Hecate’s face and landed on Iris, who was beneath her.

"Alright, I will refrain from killing the inspector."

Iris was not entirely sure, but they had time.

"Next battle: —"

The announcer announced Hecate’s name.

Hecate stood up; she was in a better mood than when Iris had found her. "It is our battle, Iris, not yours. Please don’t try to do that…"

Iris nodded. She would consult with Diantha—no, that was useless. Diantha used her like a pawn and made her do something so cruel. She did not want to see her again. And now that she was out of the tournament, she did not go back to her side.

She needed to, but only once. To get Winny back.

The match, as Diantha had expected, ended with a withdrawal. And since she was disqualified, Hecate was the first finalist. And the day after tomorrow, on the night of the full moon, Hecate would battle Rian Reed, whose battle was up next.

…

Iris opened the door—Hecate was back too. She looked much better and calmer after not having to battle.

She looked at Diantha and then at Winny, who was on Diantha’s lap. She silently stepped in, lifted Winny, and turned back. She did not look at Diantha. She was upset and angry. But Diantha showed her kindness more than anyone else, and for that, she did not want to leave with a sour ending.

"Iris?" Diantha said, confused.

Iris did not reply and opened the door. Her patience was very thinly held on. She did not want to believe Diantha showed her kindness so that she could make her leave the tournament—to make her go against Ilona’s agreement—but it was not beyond her. Iris did not want to believe that. She wanted to believe, for once, that someone did not show her kindness for their own selfishness.

"Wait, Iris…" Diantha called again.

Iris did not stop and placed Winny on her head as she walked out.

She needed to find the shattered realm; she had money, and someone would give her the location. She wanted to leave this place.

She wanted to use her weaver’s orb and escape as far away from this place as possible. But she was not calm; if she slipped, everything around her would be dead. She was surrounded by fragile humans.

As if to test her control, which was already slipping, Diantha grabbed her hand and stopped her.

"Wait, Iris," Diantha said as if she worried that Iris was leaving. Did Diantha think she was such a fool that she would stay here to be used by her again?

"Let go of me." Iris tried to free her hand, her voice on the verge of crying.

"No, you’re upset. Tell me what happened," Diantha asked her patiently, her voice warm.

She is using you, just like Mayumi did. A drop of kindness, and you will wag your tail like a dog again, that Litch worm whispered. She was not fooled enough to believe it. Yet, the warm voice of Diantha snapped the last ounce of control she held.

"I am!" Iris shouted, Her mana, which she never let go of, came crashing down on the city. Before it could rend the city into dust, Ilona contained it inside the hall. The hall and the room were split into thousands of fine, long strips until nothing but dust remained. They stood in a yellow barrier dome Ilona had created, and every second, thousands of cuts appeared and healed.

"I am. You used me! Let me go before I forget your kindness!" Iris screamed in her tear-filled voice.

"I thought you understood why we needed to do this," Diantha said calmly; she was too close to Iris.

"Understood?! You made me force her into this vile situation! She needs to kill her sister! YOU MADE ME DO SOMETHING SO VILE, LIKE... Like I’m some monster…" Iris laughed hollowly. "Of course, even if you never said it, you think I’m some hideous monster who escaped from the labyrinth, right?"

How could she not realize that Diantha wanted to use her? That’s why she never called her what she actually thought.

Iris tried to free her strength, this time with her mana. Yet, Why?! Iris panicked; how could she not free herself?

She looked up at Diantha, expecting to see anger, disgust, or something that was not tears, guilt, or sadness.

Diantha pulled Iris to her chest. It was still warm. Iris tried to move, but she could not muster the strength.

"I’m sorry; I did not think Hecate would tell you about her situation. Iris, please listen to me; you don’t know everything…" Diantha’s hold on her head tightened. "I have not once thought of you as anything but Iris; you’re no different for me than Hecate."

Iris tried to push herself away; she did not wish to hear someone who had just used her. She was lying; it was easy to lie. Of course, she would lie to keep a strong monster like her by her side. Iris clenched her jaw. If she must use force, then so be it.

Mana channeled through her viens; she would just hurt Diantha enough to move away. Just that much, nothing more.

Ilona moved to stop Iris, but a look from Diantha stopped her.

"Iris, please stop. I know you will never hurt someone weak like me. just stop. I will—" Pain coursed through Diantha as the purple lightning spammed her being. She let out a hoarse scream, a scream that the whole Colesium heard.

The next moment, everything went black for Iris, and she fell limp. Ilona stood behind her.

"She has lost all sense of reasoning at this point; your pained scream would never reach her," Ilona said, equally sad. She blamed herself for Iris’s condition. The only fruit her decision to involve Iris bore was pain for Iris and everyone else.

She had thought Iris would find peace in their company, the tournament would go by without much drama, and Hecate would not be in this situation. Oh, how wrong was she?

"It is all my fault." Diantha muttered. She, who appeared calm and strong in front of everyone, would not be seen as pitiful. Her worries, her choices, and her dilemma were none to know.

Ilona and Iris were worried about anxious Hecate, rightfully so, and overlooked the burden that Diantha had to bear. Every decision she could make led to pain and misery. If she let Iris win the tournament, her power in the Court of Laks would significantly diminish, if not become obsolete.

Slavery would return, and the inspector and the Three Houses would have more free reign over the territory of Gracia. That decision in a few months would lead to the cry of every human in Gracia, and she would be powerless to do anything.

She made the second choice. She was blamed by Ilona and Iris, seen as a cruel ruler who did not care about the pains of her people, who saw Iris as a monster, and was left crying in pain for all of Sangfroind to see. She, who loved Hecate as her own child and raised her, now had to hear others blame her for Hecate’s misery.

And she must remain indifferent to the pain she feels and think of what to do next. She must still clench her jaw and stand to assure the panicked people that she was alright and there was nothing to worry about.

And she did, and she did so gracefully; her indifferent and calm voice assured people again.

Only she was the one who must remain indifferent to her pain, for there were none who saw it.

No one except Jasper. He sat in between the sea of people, watching everything as it unfolded. He saw his lady’s pain and the burden that young shoulders bear. His hands were clenched as he blamed his own weakness. If he were a level 6, he would be strong enough to provide the strength Diantha needed to keep this nation stable and in peace. if he was strong. Then his lady would not need to hide her pain.

He, once more, felt like a worthless musician who held no value in this world where strength reigned supreme. The only thing he could do was play his music to give some comfort to his lady. So he did, and for the first time in a decade, he played his hypnotic tune in the presence of thousands of people.